Customer Reviews

MultiVet SlimCat Interactive Toy and Food Dispenser

5 star:		(185)
4 star:		(77)
3 star:		(24)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

Length:: 0:33 Mins

My cat loves to eat. He will eat until he throws up if given the chance. He scarfs his meals and then runs over to eat my other cat's food. It has been annoying having to wait around for cat #2 to finish eating, or having to lock them in separate rooms for meals. That's where the food ball came in. My cat took to it in seconds. He knew his food was in there rattling around and it clicked for him immediately. This video is actually his first time using it, and he successfully ate the whole meal this way. With cat #2 safely eating his dinner from his bowl and cat #1 preoccupied with his new food ball, they finished at the same time and no food was stolen! This has been the PERFECT fix for an annoying multiple-cat situation!

SlimCat feeder ball. Recommended by my vet for my adult cat's continued behavior problems. I could not find one in stores ANYWHERE so i had to order it online. seems to be a new product.

HOW TO USE:
Take off the top of the ball, pour in the desired amount of dry food (i think it holds 3/4 cup or maybe a cup) The food comes out of 3 holes when the pet pushes the ball around. The hole size is adjustable so you can easily change it depending on food size and how easily you want it to fall out of the ball.

I started my cat with bigger holes so more food would come out as he got used to it (as recommended by the instructions) then i made the holes smaller so it would take longer for him to eat. I took away his food dish so he wouldn't get confused. It only took a couple days for him to stop going to his food dish area. he got the idea of the ball right away.

MY OPINION:
I have a bad-behavior kitty who cries constantly for food and misbehaves when i dont feed him. The feeder ball turned out to be the answer to my prayers. I fill the ball and it takes him a couple hours to eat it all. He will push it around for a while and then leave it. When he's hungry again, he'll go back to it and eat the rest. It seems entertaining for him and I hope it gives him some stimulation while i'm at work all day. He is MUCH better behaved, he seems happier, I'm not overfeeding him anymore, and I'M much happier. Thank you thank you feeder ball!

DRAWBACKS:
these are minor things.
-Once in a while the ball gets stuck and my cat misses some of his breakfast until i get home. no big deal.
-he'll miss a food pellet once in a while and leave it on the rug for me to step on.
-i'm reluctant to use carpet powder when vacuuming because he eats the food off the floor now.
-i tend to spill some pellets when filling the ball but this would be solved if i used a funnel.

OVERALL:
This solves so many problems for people with bad-behavior kitties like me. It's really a wonderful product and i would (and do) recommend it to my friends and family.

While I don't have cats, I have two shetland sheepdogs, one 22 lbs, the other 30 lbs. My 30 lbs girl was getting far too good at removing kibbles from her Premier Waggle and her large Tricky Treat Ball. Neither of these toys were adjustable in how much comes out, unless you want to get larger kibble and I didn't want to change kibbles.

I stumbled across this item and ordered one because I like the idea that it's adjustable. There are two types of holes the food can come out of: a set of 3 smaller round holes, and another set of 3 larger holes. You adjust which holes you want by unlocking a little mechanism and twisting half of the ball so that it's where ever you want it. I have it set on the larger holes but the large holes are too big for my kibble, so I've twisted it to where only part of the larger holes are revealed. I'm also considering covering one of the 3 holes with tape on the inside so kibble can only come out of 2 holes.

The dogs love these, they roll them around with their noses. My younger boy sheltie was intrigued by it even when it was empty, he can *just* fit it in his mouth and he "noms" on it. He might be able to crack the plastic by doing this, so I take it away when it's empty.

You fill the toy by unscrewing an end cap of the ball. It's a good sized hole so it's easy to fill. My boy sheltie is able to grasp the little knob on this cap and unscrew it so all the kibble dumps out (it doesn't have to be turned far, less than a half turn). Clever boy! I covered the cap with electrician's tape so he can't unscrew it. However, he can also grip both halves of the ball and twist them so that the large holes are fully exposed, even though it's supposed to be "locked". I'll try tape again there to keep him from twisting it. I don't knock a star off for this because this toy wasn't made for dogs, it's made for cats who are quite a bit smaller than my dogs. I just wanted to see if I could make this work for my pups, and with a little fiddling, it will.

My girl sheltie only rolls this ball around to get food out, she doesn't try to open it like the boy does.

I'm ordering another so my pups don't have to share a ball.

I love the concept of this ball. Maybe it would work better if you start off using this immediately with a kitten, but with our cats, being old and set in their ways, they wouldn't touch the ball. I am not giving it low stars because of that, I am giving it less stars because it really needs to have an option for even smaller holes than it does. There are two sizes of holes in the ball, one is very large, it could probably be used for dog kibble the holes are so big. The other holes, while smaller, are still so large that tons of food falls out with even the slightest roll of the ball. There was food EVERYWHERE when we tried to show the cats how to work the ball. I guess if your cat is starving, they will eventually clean up all the food on the floor, but until then, you have to hope you don't step in the food and crush bits into your carpeting. I also found it really difficult to open the ball, even after properly unlocking the side. I really thought I was going to break the ball trying to open it. It was also difficult to close up the holes or change the sizes. I suppose this is to prevent the holes from being closed while the ball is rolling around, but there has to be a way for them to fix the difficulty of operation. For our household, where our 8 year old son is responsible for feeding the cats, it would make it really hard for him to open and fill the ball. I could see it also being an issue for older people, too, or for someone with arthritis. Maybe we just got a bad ball...? In short, great concept, but needs a little work on design.

Our cats really enjoy their food ball. We initially put a few treats in it, to see if they could figure it out. In a few minutes, they had gotten them all out. We switched to putting food in instead and adjusted the hole to a smaller size. It is quite entertaining to watch them roll the ball with their nose and sniff the floor behind it to check if anything has come out. I find they play and eat with the ball even if there is food in their bowl. The only drawback so far is when the cats are having a little too much fun with the ball and don't eat all the pieces that come out. Since the ball seems to migrate from room to room, I have to watch out for spare pieces of kibble. Totally worth it.

this ball has done two wonderful things for our cat. first, she no longer throws up. she used to gobble down her food and then throw it up after wards. now she eats a little at a time, and it's slow enough that she hasn't thrown up once. second, she's lost some weight which she needed to do. she is friskier and also better with her paws. a great product. the idea is simple: you place the food in the ball (through the twist lid on the top) and then you adjust the holes in the ball to let a little food through at a time if the ball is moving. the kitty has to move the ball with her paws or head to get food out. it becomes an intelligence test for your cat: how long until she figures out the ball. in our situation, it took two weeks. our cat is not the brightest, and we prodded the ball for her many many times to get the food out. gradually she got the hang of it and now it is the only way we feed her. it's very cute to watch her push the ball around with her paw. highly recommended.

It took my two fat cats a couple days to get used to it, but now that they have, it works great! It's the only way I serve dry food.
I followed the written instructions and started out with the holes on the large size. As they got the hang of it, I gradually decreased the size of the opening. Now they have to work to get their food. Plus my one cat can't binge (and then vomit) like she's prone to do.

The first time you try to open the balls, it's a little confusing (the instructions come inside the ball). Open the ball by turning the end that says multivet. (The thing along the center seam that looks like it might be a latch is actually a lock; once you adjust the ball to the appropriate size, slide the tab up to lock it into place).

Quickie note to cat owners:
This ball is totally adjustable, but you should NOT try to open it from the middle of the ball!
I am seeing comments how the ball dumps out food, is too hard to fill from the middle, etc.
The intended way to use it is to DIAL the middle to get the hole size right for the food you put in there.
To fill it, use the BOTTOM with the little twist section. Twist clockwise to get it off.

The instructions on how to use the ball are packed INSIDE the ball, which was really a bad idea.
But, don't break your ball trying to pry it open. Open the BOTTOM of the ball and take out the directions,
then twist the cap back on, dial the size and give to your kitty.
Hope that helps someone!

UPDATE 12/27/10 -
We ordered a SECOND one of these balls. We got a pink one. This one arrived in great condition,
wasn't warped, and works great. Now, I have no clue as to why, but one of our cats seems to prefer
the pink ball already! Ha! No clue as to why - we put the same food in them. I think I got a dirty look when
I refilled the green ball instead of the pink one. We use the same food in them, so it isn't that - he just seems
to prefer the pink one. Maybe he just likes new things! Either way - this is a great item, and we're still very
glad we got it. While we hear the midnight snack raids with the ball being rolled around, we don't get jumped on
or walked on to come and put some food in their dishes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Original review below~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, I wasn't sure how well this item might work, but decided to give it a try. I must say, I find it to be pretty "pricey" for a hollow plastic ball!

When we got it, the first goofy thing about this is that the instructions on how to OPEN the ball without breaking any of the thin plastic parts are packed INSIDE OF THE BALL!! Yup - you have to open the ball to read the directions on how to open the ball.
Someone got paid big bucks for that lame packaging design! I also truly do feel that this item is overpriced as is. I'd buy several of them if they were between $3-$4, but as is, one will have to do for our household.

Once you brave breaking the new plastic ball and just fiddle with it to open the ball, you'll see the directions are pretty much as expected. (Note - I'm not a dummy, but this is not a heavy-duty ball. I was afraid I'd force something that had some sort of little plastic hinge in the wrong direction and bust it before ever using it!) The ball has three pieces, and I'll explain how to use it in detail. I know, some will think it is stupid to do so, but I can live with that. For the rest who want to know exactly how this one works, read on.

Spoiler alert: the bottom circle on the bottom of the ball TWISTS off - it does not pop off. Also, do not try to pop the ball apart to fill it, like some cat toys work. Think ONLY twisting - no "popping" or pulling is involved with this item! So, you twist the circle on the bottom of the ball. It will lift out of the bottom grooves, leaving you with a reasonable opening (about 1-1/2" circle) to fill it with cat treats. The top part of the ball twists around the main ball body to expose archway-shaped openings for the food to come out of - the main part also has the same openings. You dial the outer part to allow an opening with just enough room for your chosen kitty treat to come out.

Now, my ball was a little bit warped and would not make a tight seal in the middle. I used a piece of scotch tape with a tiny fold-over tab (so I could get it back off easily) to hold the dialed openings where I wanted them to be. If yours is not warped, you might not need to do this. (I didn't feel it was worth sending back unless I could not get it to work at all.) The tape is working just fine, doesn't show, and the cats are not bothered by it at all. Our ball definitely needs the tape though - the warp is just enough to allow it to turn on its own and randomly change the opening size.

You can decide whether to have the openings so the treats come out very easily, or a little harder so Kitty has to work for them.
I would really advise when you first use it to keep the opening a little larger so they get immediate feedback from playing. You can dial it back and make it harder/narrower after they've learned it is something for them to play with, and get a treat from - but please - never make it so tiny that it is impossible for treats to come out. You'll just frustrate your kitties and they'd probably stop playing with it. That would be kind of mean to do. If you change the food/treat you put in there, be sure to test the opening size with a couple shakes to be sure they can indeed come out of the opening.

I've used it now with Temptations (our cats' favorite treat on earth) and with regular dry cat food. Both work just fine. You'll want to dial the ball to the closed position while filling it or you'll have a hand full of cat treats or food dust. It didn't take long for our male cat to step in and realize with a little work he could get a treat without waiting on me. He uses both his right and left paws (ah, a brilliant, ambidextrous kitty! LOL!) to bat it around and grab the treats. Our little girl (a year younger and much smaller) prefers to sit back and observe, waiting for the bigger cat to get the treats out. She'll try to snitch any he misses while he is busy rolling it around. In the last couple of days though, she has started to cautiously try to get out treats herself. (We rescued her from a dumpster, so she is very cautious about anything and everything. Otherwise, she might have dived right in. She thinks everything in the house is hers, but only wants a relationship on her timing/terms. The ball could have been a trap! LOL!)

There is one other thing to consider - we have to put the ball up in the afternoons. The food they get out of it can keep them just full enough that they don't really want dinner. It can take the place of dinner entirely, or make dinner much less desirable. Now, if you want to put Kitty's dry dinner in there and make him/her work for their keep, then fill the ball and turn it loose. But for us, dry food is breakfast, treats are treats, and they have wet food for dinner. We found that they were eating more dry than normal due to the fun of getting it out of the ball. I could definitely see filling this up with your cat's regular food and eliminating a food dish for dry entirely, unless you have multiple cats. Then you might have a hard time making sure everyone got some dinner. We've left their bowls down though, since we serve wet each day as well. (Be sure there is plenty of water available as well. Kitties need lots of liquid to avoid kidney or urinary tract problems. If they don't drink a lot, wet food helps make sure they don't get dehydrated or a buildup of uric acid in their systems.)

Right now, I've stopped putting Temptations in there, because our addicted male cat would not stop until the ball was empty! LOL! (Sounds like me with a bag of Milano cookies.) I've changed over to a hairball formula dry food that we don't use for their regular dry. It seems like a treat to them, and the fun of rolling the ball all over to get them out is still top notch. I put the food into a gallon zip-style bag, which makes filling the ball easy as can be. The only drawback? I prefer to go barefoot around the house, and bare feet seem to find those little half-bitten pieces they somehow overlooked in our multi-shaded brown carpeting. I can deal with that for the pleasure they get from this toy.
(Side note - some experts think that cats do not see some of the colors this ball comes in quite as well, like the pink and orange. However, this toy's interest will be mostly from the smell of the treats inside, so I don't think the color will be a problem at all.)

I'd recommend this toy for anyone who has cats who enjoy treats or a challenge in their games. Cats love to think about things, love to play and love to get new stuff, so go ahead, spoil your feline friend a little bit and get one!
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08/11/10 update:

Well, it's been several months since we bought this toy, and I am happy to report that it is as popular as ever.
Both cats now play with it as needed, even our little hesitant one. Her favorite time is around 3:00 AM, when no one is up to
tend to her needs - she gets her own snack. We hear it being rolled around, treats rattling from one side to the other,
then her satisfied crunching from her getting one out!

We continue to put hairball formulas or other high quality snackage in there. The one they seem to prefer is Eukanuba chicken/rice formula. It fits in the dispenser well, and I know they are getting a healthy snack.
(I have to say, since my husband started culinary training, we are reading every label on everything, including our cat treats. It can be scary, the stuff mfgs put in our foods! Our cats no longer get Temptations very often. We were shocked when we read the label, and saw all the fillers and stuff in there - sort of like a bag of greasy potato chips for adults. Not bad sometimes, but not good for you to be eaten every day either. I have a sneaking suspicion that the manufacturer has figured out a kitty version of MSG (an additive which triggers addictive responses in people), the way they go for it. Our male cat just can't stop, and will eat the whole bag if allowed. I figure they deserve better. Although a little pricey, one bag of Eukanuba lasts a long time in the treat ball.

I still very much recommend this ball.
Despite it being all plastic, it hasn't broken (although I still have to use the tape because of the warp which never adjusted back out), we've managed to not step on it, and the cats love it. They roll it to me here at my computer desk when the ball is empty! They know who knows where the refill bag is! Ha!

The SlimCat Cat Toy Ball works great if your cat likes to chase things but.. my cat often looses balls when she chases them around. The same happens with the feeder ball after a few days it disappears with all the other balls and I have to find it. It's rather large to disappear but she manages to ditch it just the same.

Also when she does feed from it she is very clever in ONLY moving it around in small circles to dispense the food so she doesn't have to chase it around the house. I don't call her Lazy Daisy for nothing.

Also be careful when you first open it to put food in it. You will think it opens in the middle and struggle in vain and possibly bust it. Look at the bottom of the ball for a small circular opening you just unscrew -- MUCH more effective.

SlimCat is the best! My guys love it and now know that "there are no free treats in life". When I get the ball - they know it's time to go to work! My Maine Coons have lots of toys - but this is one that they play with every day and together.

Thanks so much
Carol Welch
Lake St. Louis, MO